Throughout the pandemic, routine survey focus shifted to Infection Control measures, but should it not have always been there? Arguably, our nation’s most vulnerable population resides in Skilled Nursing and other post-acute care facilities, focus should always be on infection prevention and safety.
Part of the Phase 3 Requirements of Participation for Nursing Homes from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services mandate requires long-term care facilities to have a designated and specially trained Infection Preventionist (IP) to run a comprehensive infection prevention and control program. IPs work to prevent, identify, investigate, monitor, and report healthcare associated infections and communicable diseases.
With backing from several Congressmen, CMS has been urged to impose tougher rules on providers, specifically asking the agency to publicly post aggregate infection control deficiencies and staffing information for facilities. They are also asking that the reporting requirements which have gone into effect for COVID expand to include other types of infectious diseases. With more transparency, more resources will be put into addressing these conditions.
Dedicated Infection Preventionists are a valuable asset for all long-term care. Not only have they been able to take the lead throughout the COVID crisis, but they also actively implement strategies to prevent other ongoing healthcare associated infections such as CLABSI (central line acquired blood stream infection), CAUTI (catheter associated urinary tract infection), and wound care, to name a few.
Long-term care hit the news outlets for all the wrong reasons in 2020. That sinking gut feeling watching the map explode with positive cases is something I won’t soon forget. But diligent infection control practices coupled with the success of the COVID vaccine has brought about a rapid decline of COVID cases in nursing homes. These stats should be in the forefront of media reporting as well. As Mark Parkinson, the CEO of AHCA said, “I think we have the clinical nightmare in nursing homes behind us, and now we can really get to recovering from the emotional side that the residents and the staff and the incredible trauma they’ve gone through,” he added, “If we just continue to stay vigilant with this program, all of the horrible stats on cases and deaths in nursing homes, those are over, those are history.”
We are charged with keeping the momentum going, strict adherence to proven infection prevention tactics should stay in the forefront of our practices. We are beginning to see less restrictive new guidance for visitation in nursing homes. We have seen recommendations for fully vaccinated individuals lighten up. After a full year, this is like a breath of fresh spring air. We cannot let our guard down altogether, there are still steps that must be taken to protect yourself and others. While we are seeing significant drops in active cases, until we reach herd immunity, it is important to avoid risky behavior while we continue to encourage vaccination.
Continue to follow the lead of our IP and make patient safety a priority, always. This will help keep the momentum going. IPs play an invaluable role in protecting patients and frontline healthcare employees from nosocomial infections and communicable disease. With their guidance, we will be able to keep long-term care in the media spotlight all for the right reasons.
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